| Hakim Hayat |
THE Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus) Exercise on Maritime Security and Counter Terrorism will help enhance cooperation and break down communication barriers among participants, allowing a better understanding of the way different navies operate at sea and boosting the level of response particularly during a crisis.
This was stated by Commander Harry L Marsh, Commanding Officer of the US Navy destroyer USS Stethem that arrived in Brunei with its over 300-strong crew on Sunday.
The commander stressed the value of effective communication and better understanding between maritime nations involved in the exercise, either to counter a hostile response or provide humanitarian assistance.
Although this is not the first such exercise being conducted, as other multi-national and bilateral exercises also take place regularly, the commander said the exercise will help improve communications and learn from the other maritime nations about manoeuvrings and operations at sea.
The 10-day exercise, launching today in Brunei, will culminate in Singapore next week and will see professional in-port interactions and complex operations at sea.
The USS Stethem docked in Brunei waters. – PHOTOS: DEAN KASSIM
Commander Harry L Marsh, Commanding Officer of the US Navy destroyer USS Stethem, in a group photo with the local media
The exercise will see the participation of some 3,000 personnel from around 18 navy vessels, 17 helicopters, two maritime patrol aircrafts and special operation teams from the 10 Asean member countries along with participating navies from its dialogue partners India, China, Japan, Russia, Australia, Republic of Korea, New Zealand and the US.
Commander Marsh said their vast experiences with regular drills bring a good level of expertise, allowing them to pass on information to their partners.
“We learnt it and you take that knowledge and you may pass it on to the next ship,” he said. “So that’s what I hope to gain here. That is what we have learnt from 20 years of experiences and we apply that as we go forward.”
The commander added that the exercises are not only meant for preparing but also preventing possible scenarios such as piracy.
He said the first phase of the exercise yesterday involved a peer dialogue session with other participating members, to discuss counter-piracy operations and understand each others’ operations at sea.
“This is so that when we are out at sea, we don’t misinterpret what their intentions are because we know how they are going to operate,” he added as he recognised the varied safety levels or comfort zones one ship has over another when they come closer.
He shared that the USS Stethem is participating both in the in-port phase as well as the ‘underway’, or practical phase, of the exercise, additionally bringing with them the US Army Chemical Biological and Radiological Team and the Special Operations Team, including the P8 Poseidon aircraft. He also explained that during the in-port phase, table talks help formulate plans for the underway phase during which there will be a search and rescue, formation maneuvering, communication drills in Singapore.
Homeported in Yokosuka, Japan, the USS Stethem was built in May 1993 and commissioned on October 1995. It is a member of the Destroyer Squadron 15 and operated throughout the Pacific Ocean, as well as on deployments to the Persian Gulf.
Stathem was named after Steelworker 2nd Class (SW2) Robert Stethem, who was a navy sailor killed by terrorists in Lebanon in the 1980s.
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